The 450th anniversary of the siege of Szigetvár with lavish cultural programs

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is also expected to attend the 450th anniversary event commemorating to the siege of Szigetvár next September. Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović will also attend, origo wrote..

Turkish Ambassador to Hungary Sakir Fakili said that Erdogan confirmed through diplomatic channels that he would attend the anniversary events.

A Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović also confirmed her attendance as the defender of Szigetvár, Miklós Zrínyi was also a Croatian ban.

Organizers plan a wide range of cultural activities for the anniversary event, including a rock opera performance that reenact the siege of Szigetvár. The programs incorporate a Zrínyi exhibition, and various traditional performances among others, an exhibition of weaponry used by the two armies during the siege of Szigetvár.

A Zrínyi Commemorative Committee will be set up to organize the cultural programs; for the occasion, the town will renovate the fortress and the surrounding area.

Szigetvár is a cultic site for both Hungarians and Turks though for different reasons.

Hungarians remember the defender of the fortress of Szigetvár, Miklós Zrínyi who died a heroic death while defending the town from Ottoman forces.

In the battle of Szigetvár the Turks lost the greatest ruler of the Ottoman Empire – Suleiman the Magnificent.

According to historical records, the Sultan died two days before the fall of Szigetvár. His heart and his other organs were buried in a golden bowl, in the place where his tent stood during the siege.

His body was taken back to Istanbul, where a grandiose tomb was built to his memory; but posterity did not forget the golden bowl either that still lies buried somewhere in the battlefield of Szigetvár.

Archaeologists have been trying to locate the historical burial site for many years, but so far, without any success. Time to time rumors surface up about the possible location of the burial site but so far, all rumors turned out to be false.

It is rumored that Suleiman’s son erected a marble tomb for his father’s memory but after the Ottoman empire started losing control over the territory of Hungary the Habsburgs invaded the area and destroyed the magnificent memorial.

translated by hungarianambiance.com

Source: origo.hu